02/19/2026
Tangela Baldwin Stanley, my family and dear friend passed away yesterday. She was more of an auntie in my younger years but grew into a cousin and sister. She lit up a room with her smile, presence, and voice. In her presence, you felt seen down to your soul. On this Earth, she was so many things - a life-long learner, an avid reader, a travel lover, a loving mother/wife/sister, and one of the many leagues of spiritual wise women I had the pleasure to grow up with. What an honor to grow up in the Greensboro Bahai Community with her and her family! I cannot even articulate how much of a queen this woman was and will continue to be. I look up to her and aspire to be her. Her regal nature, her smile, and her articulate voice stopped you in your tracks and you listened.
A queen, a wise woman, a lover of life passed away yesterday. When you saw her and her husband Jesse together, their love, humor, and respect for each other felt palpable and again, my young eyes took it in and I said, “that’s what I want in a relationship.” Her children are grown now, which still baffles me, as I remember them as babies and toddlers. Jessamyn and Gabriel Stanley beam their own light, fostered, encouraged, and tended by Tangela and Jesse. Yet, I see speckles of Tangela living on within them.
A regal, kind, soulful, funny, intuitive, wise, hilarious, and spiritual goddess died yesterday. A sense of deep reverence and heart break sits with me, as I imagine this world without her. She’s off to meet her family now and her physical presence will no longer be with us. As I look at pictures of her mother, sister, and friends beyond the veil, I know she’ll have a huge welcoming party. I sense a lot of us who knew her, still on this Earth, are still trying to find our footing, with swollen eyes that have shed many tears. I cannot help but see her smile, the flash of her sweet caring eyes telling us she’ll still be with us. I love you Tangela and what a legacy you are leaving!
I love this pic of her with my niece Maggie 💕
